Essential Utilities announces change of location for 2020 annual meeting of shareholders

BRYN MAWR, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Due to the public health impact from the COVID-19 virus and to protect the well-being of its shareholders, employees and other meeting participants, Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE: WTRG) will not hold an in-person annual meeting this year. Notice is hereby given that the location of the annual meeting of shareholders of Essential Utilities, which will be held on May 6, 2020, at 8 a.m. Eastern Time, has been changed to a virtual meeting format only, instead of holding an in-person meeting in Pittsburgh, Pa.

How to participate in the virtual annual meeting:

As described in the proxy materials for the annual meeting, shareholders of record as of March 9, 2020, the record date, are entitled to participate in the annual meeting. To access the virtual annual meeting, go to www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/WTRG2020 before the scheduled start time. Online access to the meeting will begin at approximately 7:45 a.m. on May 6, 2020. Essential’s proxy materials are currently available at www.proxyvote.com.

Shareholders of record and beneficial owners of shares held in street name will need to visit www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/WTRG2020 and use their 16-digit control number provided in the notice to log in to this website. Only one shareholder per 16-digit control number can access the meeting. Those without a control number may attend as a guest of the meeting but will not have the option to vote their shares or participate during the virtual meeting. We would encourage shareholders to log in to this website and access the webcast before the virtual annual meeting’s start time.

Further instructions on how to attend, participate in and vote at the virtual annual meeting, including how to demonstrate your ownership of our stock as of the record date, will be available at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/WTRG2020 beginning two weeks prior on April 22, 2020.

Forward-Looking Information Cautionary Notice

Essential’s virtual annual meeting may contain forward-looking statements, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, directly and indirectly relating to our business, developments, trends and consolidation in the water, wastewater and natural gas utility and infrastructure industries, recovery of capital expenditures and expenses in rates, projected capital expenditures and related funding requirements, our capability to pursue timely rate increase requests, opportunities for future acquisitions, both within and outside the water, wastewater and natural gas industries, and the success of pending acquisitions and the impact of future acquisitions. Many factors could change the anticipated results, including, without limitation, disruptions in the global economy, the spread of the COVID-19 virus resulting in business disruptions, capital to be invested by the water, wastewater, and gas distribution divisions of the company, our ability to integrate and otherwise realize all of the anticipated benefits of businesses, technologies or services that we may acquire, our ability to manage the expansion of our business, including our ability to manage our expanded operations following the closing of the Peoples Natural Gas acquisition, risks associated with procuring working capital, and risks associated with acquisitions. Readers are encouraged to read Essential’s 2019 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a more complete description of the company, its businesses, its strategies and the various risks it faces. The company assumes no duty to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or otherwise.

About Essential
Essential is one of the largest publicly traded water, wastewater and natural gas providers in the U.S., serving approximately 5 million people across 10 states under the Aqua and Peoples brands. Essential is committed to excellence in proactive infrastructure investment, regulatory expertise, operational efficiency and environmental stewardship. The company recognizes the importance water and natural gas play in everyday life and is proud to deliver safe, reliable services that contribute to the quality of life in the communities it serves. For more information, visit http://www.essential.co.

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